The quality of your relationships depends upon your vulnerability.
The quality of your life is dependent upon the quality of your relationships. As one of our 6 human needs is connection, the ability to connect deeply with another human being is essential. Connection gives value to our lives, and helps us in the creation of our personality, our security and our humanity.
More and more these days we see people forming superficial realationships. As we grow in our ability to communicate with many, it seems that we are deeply connected to so few.
And we as a species, a society, and as individuals, are suffering for it.
The key to deeper relationships seems to be our willingness to allow ourselves to be vulnerable with others. But vulnerability is scary, and so many of us practice a form of relationship where we share some, but not all, of the truths of our hearts. Fear of judgment, of misunderstanding and of ridicule prevent us from truly opening ourselves to another.
But only when we are truly vulnerable can we let another get close enough to us that our relationship can grow. All of us have our weaknesses, our jealousies, our insecurities, but so many of us hide these in the darkness, and bring them not into the light of friendship.
True friendship does not judge; it observes. True friendship does not ridicule; it embraces. True friendship does not treat lightly the wounds of another’s soul; it binds up those wounds with understanding, compassion and loyalty.
Today, I invite you to share deeper in your relationships. Tell those you trust how you are really feeling, what you are really afraid of, what you really hope to become.
Go deeper in your relationships, and you will find a greater abundance of peace in your soul as you walk your journey in the company of good, kind and loyal friends.
For there is nothing greater in the destruction of fear than the light of friendship shining from one who is compassionate.
Let that light cleanse your soul, and drive out the darkness that plagues you.
Be that light, and receive that light.
And glow.
-- Dr. Alan Barnes
@maddrbmusings